Mato’s wine glass shaped coffee cup: bringing the design to life

Drawing on wine glass geometry, Mato has taken what wine lovers have long known and applied it to coffee. Danny Davies from Climpson & Sons talks about the origin of the MOCU by Mato Coffee Cup.

I had been sitting on the idea of a coffee cup based on the stemless wine glass for quite a few years. Clearly I was not alone in thinking this: I was chatting to a good friend of mine, planning a catch-up on my annual trip through Bangkok to Laos, when he said something to the effect of “I’m thinking of launching a homeware ceramic range … surely the classic coffee cup designs could be improved?”.

So, the “Tasting of Bangkok” was born! The good friend, myself and his MAIKR design team set up a range of mugs and wine glasses and used some of Climpson & Sons’ Kenya made in a cafetiere to taste, smell and obsess over for the afternoon. We found the results striking – the wine glasses with the most inward-angular design (fat at the bottom to narrow at the top) delivered aroma for both a longer time and with a cleaner finish. Also, “swirling” the cool contents re-invigorated the aromatic experience.

They went away, as did I, and they came up with the MOCU by Mato Coffee cup, as well as a nifty V60-compatible cone that fits snugly on the top. In fact, the resulting design is part of a unique modular and customizable line of cups and accessories which will all be launched in the UK soon under the MATO brand. We have been so impressed with the potential of these products that we have signed up to make these available to the home market and also other wholesalers.

As roasters we’re constantly looking for ways to improve how the customer experiences our coffee. I was won over by the aromatic experience of the MOCU by Mato cup. These days you’ve got people making really good filter coffee at home with quality beans, but then drinking them out of any old mug. As a result, they are missing out on this experience which makes a massive difference to the taste. With the MOCU by Mato cup you actually get to smell the coffee in a more focused way.

I would encourage users to drink their coffee black, and not overfill the mug (around the angular pivot is fine) and take their time – sniffing more before taking a vigorous slurp. We often explore a coffee’s flavour profile as it cools and it opens up another layer of appreciation too often missed in our rush to get on with the day!

Take a look at the coffee and espresso cups and accessories in our webshop. They make great gifts and there will be a box set with this in mind!